Journalist jailed for espionage after dining with Japanese diplomat in China.

According to his family, a well-known Chinese journalist was given a seven-year prison sentence in Beijing for espionage.

Since February 2022, Dong Yuyu, a commentator and editor, has been in police custody after being detained by authorities while meeting a Japanese diplomat at a restaurant, as reported by The Associated Press.

According to Dong's family, the verdict on Friday identified Hideo Tarumi, then-Japanese ambassador, and Masaru Okada, Shanghai-based chief diplomat, as members of an espionage organization, Dong.

Dong was the deputy head of the editorial department at Guangming Daily, a state-owned newspaper in China, and also contributed to the Chinese edition of the New York Times.

His published work, which supported constitutional democracy and political reform, was later deemed to be in opposition to the Communist Party's position in China.

Throughout his journalistic career spanning several decades, Dong maintained relationships with diplomats, scholars, and journalists from other countries. Additionally, he viewed Tarumi as a close friend.

He was aware that state security was always watching him, so he decided to be as transparent as possible when interacting with his Japanese or American contacts.

"The family stated that every Chinese citizen should be appalled by the reasoning that the Chinese government considers foreign embassies and diplomats to be "espionage organizations.""

Dong's conviction was criticized by the U.S. Ambassador to China, Nicholas Burns.

Burns stated that it is unjust to punish Dong for exercising his freedom of speech and press, which are protected by the PRC's constitution for all its citizens.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.